PALM BEACH, Fla. – One of the most discussed items on the Cowboys' offseason agenda has been Micah Parsons' extension as he heads into the last year of his rookie contract. Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones has had conversations directly with Parsons, and progress is being made.
"I've spent five, six hours with him myself," Jones said. "Had a lot of discussions, most of the issues we're in agreement on, and I've discussed it all. But we obviously don't have an agreement relative to a new contract, Micah's under contract, and so we'll see how that goes. It's not uncommon for me to visit directly with players, and in this particular case, that's the way I'm doing it."
When it comes to the issues Jones mentioned, he said that discussions revolved around contract terms, guarantees and money, and that conversing directly with Parsons is the best way to get to the finish line.
"I'm the one who has to sign the check and Micah's the one that has to agree to it," Jones said. "That's the straightest way to get there is the one writing the check and the one agreeing to it talking, and that's the principle that's involved here."
In the time since the offseason began, other pass rushers like Myles Garrett have signed new extensions that reset the market. While some argue that drives up the price for a player like Parsons by waiting, Jones doesn't feel rushed and would much rather pay more to get ensure the highest chance of success.
"I don't view it as urgent at all," Jones said of coming to an agreement with Parsons. "Some say using the basis that the earlier you get something done the cheaper, well the earlier you get something done, a lot of times the more mistakes you make. You might want to see a few more cards play, not just with that particular negotiation, but with the whole team."
"I know I'm kind of being a little defensive here, but the idea that the only success is getting a contract done at an early time is incorrect, I'd rather pay more and get it right than I had pay less and screw it up."
Some of those cards on their roster include other players up for an extension like DaRon Bland and Tyler Smith. That doesn't mean Parsons' deal serves as a prerequisite for other deals down the line.
"Not at all, we've got him covered if it's a franchise number, we've got that covered all the way through," Jones said when asked if Parsons' contract was a prerequisite for other players. "It is absolutely non-essential to have a deal with Micah as far as structuring our salary cap over the next year or two."
While there hasn't been any deal struck just yet, Jones did say that the negotiations are further along in comparison to Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb's contract talks last season. With that in mind, it's not necessarily a sign of the finish line coming up.
"Yes, I'd say that's the case," Jones said when asked if he and Parsons were further along in their discussions compared to Dak and CeeDee. "Which doesn't mean necessarily we'll have anything done by training camp or at any time in the future because he's under contract for the next year. But the point is we have had very good discussions, and we've had a real good meeting of the minds."
Jones emphasized that all of the conversations about Parsons' extension have been had directly between Jones and Parsons. Parsons is one of just three people that have Jones' cell phone number, and Jones has not contacted Parsons' agent as a part of the negotiations and is more focused on the direct line of communication with Micah.
"I'm not trying to demean him in any way, but this isn't about an agent," Jones said. "The agent doesn't have one thing to do with what we're doing when we get on a football field against a team. Micah does, to the degree I'm involved I do. The people that have something to do with what we do going forward relative to our fans and football are me and the player, not the agent."
As more talks continue, one thing that Jones wants to be absolutely sure of before signing a check is ensuring that Parsons can take a step in the right direction from a leadership perspective.
"Micah has to be the player that he wants to be paid as. He has to be a tremendous leader for the Dallas Cowboys," Jones said. "He has the skill, he has the capacity mentally, and so for us to justify the kinds of dollars we're talking about with any basis, he has to literally lead the way. And he's so substantive that if he's halfway not leading, it's glaring. And so Micah has to really lead, I think he's committed to do that."
Does Jones feel like Parsons has already demonstrated that level of leadership or is there still room for growth?
"In every aspect of Micah, he's got great potential to do more," Jones said. "Every aspect, whether it be in my mind physically or from the standpoint of physically, he has a lot of potential and he is so capable mentally that he could make us all follow him a little bit."
"I think he's that kind of individual and that kind of person. But I will tell you that those are the kinds of things that I want to personally have total and complete satisfaction that I've got a commitment from him, and that I can see that it's not just contract talk."
